Monday, November 2, 2026

Top 100 Classical Music Composers

Last year around this time, I dove deep into a classical music phase as I normally do leading up to Christmas season. My focus was entirely on early compositions from the medieval and renaissance age, (see  Top 50 Early Music Composers). This list focused on all the musicians that came before the common era which ranges from 500-1600. I then intended to continue my study into the common practice era practice (1600-1900) however my new job swallowed up a lot of my free time and inspiration. Well now I have a little free time to finish this long overdue project of my all time favorite classical music composers. I actually already have a document I wrote on this topic many years ago but just never compiled into this blog. So this will be an updated version of that writing I made in 2010. 

So to be clear I am focusing primarily on the Common Practice Era, which spans the periods of Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern. The Renaissance Era was no doubt a period of angelic music and vocal harmony however it still lacked proper structure. This type of polyphony music felt as if you were floating in space. However by the 1600s at the dawn of the Baroque age, musicians began experiment with new forms of monody, which was a single more linear melody. This now felt as if the song had a proper beginning, middle, and end rather then just a timeless void. The Baroque age also introduced new elements of bass line, operatic music, and tonal harmony (which established the system of major and minor tonality). Another key distinction was the Enlightenment that inspired music to free itself from Christian elements. 

By the 1750s this music continued to evolve with more emphasis on the grand symphonies. Musicians like Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven put higher emphasis on balance, clarity, and musical themes. Their melodies were more symmetrical and defined which boosted their fame since their music was more identifiable. By the 1790s classical music hit it's golden age with the city of Vienna as the epicenter. Theater operas, concertos, symphonies were open to the public which brought on some of the earliest examples of musician stardom. By the mid-1800s this style shifted into a more expressive, emotional, and imaginative music supported by larger orchestras. It's champions were Liszt, Chopin, Brahms, and Wagner. In a new age of musical stardom, these great musicians became influential not only on the public but on political leaders, philosophy, and other art mediums. 

By the turn of the 20th century, music continued to evolve into one that was more technical and unconventional. This brought on the modern era which introduced new elements of dissonance, atonality, rhythms, and innovative composition. No doubt supported by the boom in technological resources. It's champions were Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky, and Sergei Prokofiev who could now be streamed through recording and visual mediums. Classical music has continued to move in many modern directions ever since. 

For this post I want to focus on the classic stuff so my cut-off will likely by 1950ish. The first 50 are fairly new, lesser-known additions, but the top 50 are solid favorites of mine. I've highlighted my favorited pieces in red. I also confess upfront that it is mostly western European and American heavy. Perhaps some day I could explore Eastern classical music a little more. One more note I'd like to make here, is that I don't want to include film composers on this list (such as John Williams). While their music can no doubt be classified as symphonic orchestra, it is often seen more as background music to a film. It's part of a mainstream cinema production rather than it's own independent classical work (you just cannot separate John Williams from Star Wars and so forth). I still love film composers however and will make a separate post on them after this! So without further ado here is my list of greatest classical music composers. 

Honorable Mention: 

  • Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959) Brazil
  • Francois Joseph Gossec (1734-1829) Belgium
  • Amy Beach (1867-1944) United States
  • Florence Prince (1887-1953) United States
  • Lili Boulanger (1893-1918) France
  • Alexander von Zemlinsky (1871-1942) Austria
  • Witold Lutoslawski (1913-1994) Poland
  • Pierre Boulez (1925-2016) France
  • Luis Spohr (1784-1859) Germany
  • Zoltan Kodaly (1882-1967) Hungary
  • Antonio Soler (1729-1783) Spain
  • Domenico Zipli (1688-1726) Italy
  • Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837) Slovakia
  • Luigi Cherubni (1760-1842) Italy
  • Marc-Antonie Charpentier (1643-1704) France
  • John Cage (1912-1992) United States
  • Darius Milhaud (1892-1974) France
  • Alban Berg (1885-1935) Austria
  • Anton Webern (1883-1945) Austria
  • Leo Delibes (1836-1891) France


100. Antonio Salieri
  • Years: 1750-1825
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Classical
  • Life: He is obviously most famous from his alleged rivalry with Mozart depicted in many stories most notably the great 1984 film, Amadeus. However removing Mozart from his story he was still a very influential musician during the golden age of music in Vienna late 1700s. He served as a court composer to Emperor Joseph II and composed over 40 operas throughout his life. Another major detail of his life that is often overlooked is his teaching of many great musicians such as Beethoven, Liszt, and Schubert. While some may label it is mediocre it does have a classical and historical quality to it, no doubt it all the more relevant with his growing legacy. 
  • Instrument: Keyboard, harpsichord, piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Sinfonia Veneziana III Presto
    • Axur Re d'Ormus (his opera performed in the film Amadeus)
    • La Iocandiera Overture
    • Requiem in C Minor
    • Tarare

99. Giacomo Meyerbeer
  • Years: 1791-1864
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: First great exponent of Grand Opera.
  • Life: Born in a Jewish family, many critics claim that his early success was due to his great fortune. However he managed to prove them wrong with his compositions that became some of the most successful operas across Europe during the 19th century. He later faced heavy opposition from the antisemite Richard Wagner. His music was also later banned by Nazi Germany due to their strict laws of antisemitism.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Il Crociato in Egitto (The Crusade in Egypt)
    • Robert le diable
    • Les Huguenots
    • Le Prophete
    • L'Africaine
    • Dinorah

98. Steve Reich
  • Years: 1936-present
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Modern minimalism, contemporary, experimental music
  • Life: Considered a pioneer of American minimalism and experimental music. His music uses heavy rhythmic patterns, repetition, and gradual changes. He also incorporates cultural elements such as African and Bali percussion  It has a modern, mystical, and even a hopeful quality to it especially his famous piece, Music for 18 Musicians (which sounds like an airline advertisement). 
  • Instrument: Piano, percussion
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Music for 18 Musicians- Section I (Classical favorite) 
    • Different Trains
    • Electric Counterpoint
    • Piano Phase

97. Olivier Messiaen
  • Years: 1908-1992
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Modernism. Rhythmically complex, harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transportation
  • Life: He was a devout Roman Catholic who worked as an organist at La Trinite in Paris for over 60 years. At this post he wrote many of his most famous compositions which drew on a modern form of theology and nature. He pioneered the concept of birdsong and turned their calls it into a technical form of composition. He traveled widely and wrote many works inspired by diverse influences
  • Instrument: Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • La nativite du seigneur (The Birth of the Savior)
    • Quatuor pour la fin du temps
    • Trois petites liturgies de la presence divine
    • Vingt Regards sur l'enfant Jesus
    • Harawi
    • La transfiguration de nostre seigneur Jesus Christ
    • Des canyons aux etoiles
    • Saint Francois d'Assise
96. Charles Ives
  • Years: 1874-1954
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Experimental modernism
  • Life: Regarded as the first American original musician, who combined popular music and church music, along with European art music; He engaged in a systematic program of experimental music with polytonality. His music was mostly overlooked during his lifetime and he did not achieve recognition until after his death. He is best known for his hymn tunes, and traditional songs
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Symphony No. 2
    • Central Park in the Dark
    • The Unanswered Question
    • Three places in New England
    • Piano Sonata No. 2
    • Symphony No. 4
    • Universe Symphony

95. Jean-Marie LeClair
  • Years: 1697-1764
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Baroque
  • Life: Throughout his lifetime he became one of the greatest violinist during the French Baroque age. He studied alongside Giovanni Battista Somis who was a pupil of the great Arcangelo Corelli. LeClair eventually established his own reputation as a great musician and even played in the royal court of King Louis XV. He was tragically murdered in 1764 in what became one of the greatest mysteries in classical music history. 
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Violin Sonata in D major Op 9 No 3 Sarabanda
    • Violin Concerto in A major Op 10 No 2
    • Violin concerto in D major Op 7 No 2
    • Sonata for Two Violins in G Major Op 3 No 1
    • Scylla et Glaucus
    • Concerto 5 in A Minor Op 7- Vivace

94. Alexander Glazunov
  • Years: 1865-1936
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Romantic Period; Russian Nationalism and Cosmopolitanism
  • Life: He was a student of Rimsky-Korsakov who later became a proud musician of Russian nationalism. Glazunov became the head of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, the Petrograd Conservatory, and finally the Leningrad Conservatory of which he inspired the famous Dmitri Shostakovich. He is best known for his symphonies, ballets, and violin concertos. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Seasons (Ballet)
    • Raymonda
    • Symphony No. 3
    • Stenka Razin Op 13
    • Violin Concerto in A minor Op 82
 93. Leonard Bernstein
  • Years: 1918-1990
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Classical, symphonic, jazz-influenced, musical theater
  • Life: Born in Massachusetts as a Ukrainian-Jew he rose to fame when substituting for another conductor. He later became the director of the New York Philharmonic from 1958 to 1969. During this time he began work on some of his most famous works for Broadway and other symphonies and concerts. Through his production of West Side Story he became one of the most famous American composers of all time. His composition has a unique mixture of classical, jazz, and musical theater. He's without question the greatest musical theater composer, which is basically a modern form of opera or operetta. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • West Side Story (Maria, America, Somewhere, I Feel Pretty)
    • Candide- Overture
    • Symphony No 1- Jeremiah
    • Symphony No 2- Age of Anxiety
    • Symphony No 3- Kaddish
    • Sereande after Plato's Symposium
    • On the Waterfront (Main score for the 1954 film)


92. Mikhail Glinka
  • Years: 1804-1857
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: First Russian composer to gain famous recognition and considered the father of Russian music. Was a major influence to the Five's creation of distinctive Russian music
  • Life: Often regarded as the father of Russian classical music he helped infuse western music with Russian melodies and traditions. His two greatest operas include A Life of the Tsar and Ruslan and Lyudmila. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • A life for the Tsar
    • Ruslan and Lyudmila
    • Patrioticheskaya Pesnya (Russian National Anthem from 1990-2000)
    • Kamarinskaya
    • Mazurka in C Minor

91. Jan Dismas Zelenka
  • Years: 1679-1745
  • Nationality: Czech
  • Musical Style: Baroque
  • Life: One of the great Catholic court composers of the Baroque age he worked alongside JS Bach and George Philipp Telemann. His music has a forceful powerful quality with double bass, heavy strings, and strong vocal. His music did not acheive fame or recognition until after his death.   
  • Instrument: Double bass
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Miserere in C Minor ZMV 57
    • Larghetto
    • Lamentationes Jeremiae prophetae ZWV 53-54
    • Six Trio Sonatas ZMV 181
    • Missa Sanctae Caeciliae: ZWV 1- Gloria in excelsis Deo
    • Missa Votiva

90. Manuel de Falla
  • Years: 1876-1946
  • Nationality: Spanish
  • Musical Style: Incorporated Flamenco into classical composition
  • Life: Studied in Madrid and Paris, and released many well known pieces that infused classical elements with Spanish folk tradition. He later moved to Argentina after Francisco Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Nights in the Garden of Spain
    • El Amor Brujo (Ballet of Love the Magician)
    • The Three Cornered-Hat
    • El retablo de maese Pedro (Master Peter's Puppet Show)
    • La vide breve
    • Seven Spanish Folk Songs
89. Clara Schuman
  • Years: 1819-1896
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Romantic
  • Life: She became a young pianist prodigy under her strict father and later married the great Robert Schumann. She was able to achieve her own level of respect and fame as a musician while still being the wife of Robert Schumann. She helped him through his mental illness and after his death she continued work on her music. She later began a close relationship with the legendary Johannes Brahms who was madly in love with her. Her music achieved even more fame after her death due to her close ties with Robert Schuman and Brahms. It has a very romantic, emotional vibe to it carried by her piano virtuosity. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Liebersfruhling Op. 37 No 11 (Collaborative work with her husband Robert Schuman)
    • Three Romances Op 11: Andante
    • Piano Concerto Op 7- II Romanze
    • Piano Trio in G Minor Op 17- Piu Animato
    • Three Romances Op 22 No 1 (Cello and Piano)

88. Francis Poulenc
  • Years: 1899-1963
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Modern. Art song, solo piano music, chamber music, oratorio, opera, ballet music, and orchestral music. Member of the French group, Les Six. He was described as half-monk and half-delinquent.
  • Life: He was a member of the French Les Six group of composers who sought to break away from Romantic aestheticism and create a new sound of modern French culture. His music has an element of comedy but also some works of deeper spirituality. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Les Biches
    • Les mamelles de Tiresias
    • Dialouges of the Carmelites
    • Concerto for Two Pianos
    • Cello Sonata FP 143- II Cavatine

87. Hugo Wolf
  • Years: 1860-1903
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Romantic. 
  • Life: He was considered a master of “Lieder” (Songs) which blended poetry with dramatic music of passionate vocals and intricate piano arrangements. He had several bursts of creativity yet was frequently interrupted by severe depression, and died at an early age of 43. His music provides a unique psychological and almost a haunting element to it which is no doubt a reflection of his mental struggles. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Morike Lieder (His landmark collection of 53 emotional songs)
    • Italian Serenade
    • Der Corregidor (a comic opera)

86. Carl Nielsen
  • Years: 1865-1931
  • Nationality: Danish
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic. Danish nationalism; progressive tonality
  • Life: Brought up by a poor yet musically talented family, he showed great talent at an early age. He became best known for his six trademark symphonies as well as director of the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen. In his later years his music transformed from a national Romantic style to a more modern unconventional style. 
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Saul og David (Saul and David opera)
    • Maskarade
    • Helios Overture
    • Fynsk Foraar
    • Symphony No. 4
    • Symphony No. 5
    • Symphony No. 6
    • Hymn of Love
    • Sovnen (The Sleep)
    • The Mist is Rising
85. William Walton
  • Years: 1902-1983
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: Modernist, ballets, operas, classical symphonies
  • Life: Self taught composer renown as a slow working perfectionist. His rise to fame came with his breakthrough symphony Belshazzar's Feast. Aside from his modern and classical compositions he also provided musical scores for films and Shakespeare theater adaptations. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Touch Her Soft Lips (From the 1944 film Henry V)
    • Facade-An Entertainment
    • Belshazzar's Feast (cantata)
    • Symphony No. 1
    • Troilus and Cressida (opera)
    • Crown Imperial
84. Amy Beach
  • Years: 1867-1944
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Romantic, minimalism
  • Life: She is considered the first successful female American composer, who was entirely home grown without European training. She was a gifted pianist as a child and overcame gender barriers to rise to the top as a musician of the Romantic era. Her piano melodies have a very gentle, expressive, contemplative, almost melancholic quality to them. Her Gaelic Symphony was the first symphony published by an American woman composer.  
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Gaelic Symphony (Symphony in E Minor Op 32)
    • By the Still Waters
    • 4 Sketches Op 15. No 3- Dreaming
    • Young Birches Op 128. No 2
    • 3 Compositions, Op 40. No 2
    • Romance Op 23

83. Ottorino Respighi
  • Years: 1879-1936
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Romantic. Blended styles of the 16th, 17th, and 18th century into incredible orchestral pieces
  • Life: A musicologist that infused multiple eras into his music reaching into Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and Modern. He studied violin under Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and later moved on to orchestral composition. He spent his final years in Rome as a thriving musician where he achieved many of his most famous works.  
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Fontane de Rome
    • Pini di Rome
    • Feaste Romane (Roman Festivals)
    • Pines of Rome
    • Ancient Airs and Dances

82. Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
  • Years: 1805-1847
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Early Romantic
  • Life: She was the older sister of Felix Mendelssohn and possessed great skill as a pianist and composer. She wrote over 450 works throughout her lifetime, many of which were published under Felix's name since she was a woman. Her greatest claim to fame was the piano cycle Das Jahr. Her music demonstrates the ideal romantic quality of expressive piano or string.  
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Schwanenlied
    • Notturno in G Minor
    • Allegretto
    • String Quarter in E Flat Major H 277
    • Allegro molto in C Minor
    • Piano Trio in D Minor
    • Das Jahr, H. 385, No 5 May (Spring Song)

81. Paul Hindemith
  • Years: 1895-1963
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Neoclassicism. Romantic idiom, expressionism; tonal music that is non-diatonic
  • Life: He grew up in Germany and studied music during the during the rise of the Nazi Regime. He later moved to America where he taught music theory at Yale and developed his own unique modern style of expressionism. His music has a unique blend of modern with romantic and classical elements, thus making him a key figure of neoclassicism (alongside Stravinsky and Prokofiev) . 
  • Instrument: Viola, Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Kammermusik (Chamber Music)
    • Mathis der Maler (opera)
    • Trauermusik (Funeral Music)
    • Der Schwandreher
    • Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes of Carl Maria von Weber
    • Symphony in B-flat for Band

80. François Couperin
  • Years: 1668-1733
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Baroque composer; Known as Couperin the Great, from a musically talented family.
  • Life: Born into a well revered family of musicians in Paris he inherited his family's organist position at Saint-Gervais Church at a young age. Through his name but also his skill he ascended to become a court composer for the Sun king Louis XIV. Later known as Couperin the Great his music had a distinctive Baroque style to it by infusing elements of French and Italian music. His most famous piece is the Mysterious Barricades. 
  • Instrument: Organ, Harpsichord
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Les Conerts Royaux
    • Lecons de Tenebres
    • Les Baricades Misterieuses
    • Piece de clavecin
    • Messe pour les paroisses
    • Les Nations

79. Gaetano Donizetti
  • Years: 1797-1848
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Romantic Era. 
  • Life: He was born in poverty in Bergamo, Italy and passionately studied music to become one of the leading composers of the Romantic Era. He composed over 60 operas throughout his lifetime before he suffered from mental illness and died at 50. He is regarded as one of the key figures of the bel canto opera and also wrote many concertos, sonatas, and chamber pieces
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Lucia di Lammermoor
    • L'eslisir de Amor (opera) “Una furtiva lagrima” (aria)
    • Dos Pasquale
    • Le fille du regiment (The daughter of the Regiment)
    • Zoraida di Granata
    • Lucia di Lammermoor

78. Domenico Scarlatti
  • Years: 1685-1757
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Baroque and Classical; Keyboard Sonatas
  • Life: The son of the famous Alessandro Scarlatti, Domenico became a celebrated composer in his own right. He grew up alongside the great George Frideric Handel and later worked in the service of the Spanish and Portuguese Royal Families. He is best known for his original style in his keyboard sonatas. 
  • Instrument: Harpsichord 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Sonata in D Minor K 141
    • Sonata in B Minor K 27
    • Sonata in E Major K 380
    • Sonata in G major K 455
    • Sonata in F minor K 466
    • Sonata in B minor K 87

77. Leoš Janáček
  • Years: 1854-1928
  • Nationality: Czech
  • Musical Style: Modernist. Nationalist. 
  • Life: He studied music in Prague, Leipzig, and Vienna before settling in Brno and establishing his own organ school. Inspired by Moravian and Slavic folk music, he created an original modern style to celebrate Czech nationalism. His major breakthrough came with his opera Jenufa in 1904. He produced some of his greatest works in the final few years of his life. He was a composer, theorist, folklorist, and a teacher. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • On an Overgrown Path: Book 1, No 7: Good Night
    • Jenufa- Co chvila (His most famous opera)
    • Sinfonietta
    • Glagolitic Mass
    • Taras Bulba
    • String Quartet No 1: Kruetzer Sonata
    • Idyll for Strings- Adagio
    • String Quartet No 2- Intimate Letters

76. Samuel Barber
  • Years: 1910-1981
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Modern. Great emotional appeal; Romanticism, tonality, twelve-tone technique, and jazz variations
  • Life: Best known for his tragic piece Adagio of Strings made famous in the 1986 film Platoon. This piece is often considered one of the saddest compositions ever written. Barber experienced success outside this one piece receiving two Pulitzer Prizes for his opera Vanessa and his piano concerto. His music infuses a modern style of tonality with jazz and romantic elements.    
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Adagio for Strings (Classical Favorite!!)
    • Vanessa (opera)
    • Knoxville: Summer of 1915
    • Prayers of Kierkegaard
    • Excursions Op. 20
    • Antony and Cleopatra (opera)

75. Muzio Clementi
  • Years: 1752-1832
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Classical, with some Romantic influences
  • Life: He was a child prodigy who became part of the golden era of music in Vienna in the late 1700s. He famously had a keyboard duel with Mozart arranged by Emperor Joseph II. He is often regarded as the "Father of Piano" due to his modern techniques. He was an influential teacher to many great musicians most notably Beethoven.  
  • Instrument: Piano, harpsichord, organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Piano Sonatina in C major Op 36 No 1- Andante (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Sonata in B-Flat Major- Allegro con brio
    • Gradus ad Parnassum, Op 44
    • Piano Sonata in D Major, Op 25 No 6
    • Symphony No 3 in G Major (Great National Symphony)

74. Dieterich Buxtehude
  • Years: 1637-1707
  • Nationality: Danish
  • Musical Style: Baroque style, organ repertoire... composed a wide variety of vocal and instrumental idioms.
  • Life: He became one of the most influential organists of the Baroque era with a classic sacred church style to his music. He spent most of his time working at the St. Mary's Church in Lubeck Germany where he inspired many musicians including Bach. 
  • Instrument: Organ, Cello
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Cantate Domino BuxWV 15: Alleluia
    • Membra Jesu Nostri (The Limbs of our Jesus)
    • Passacaglia in D. Minor (organ work)
    • Prelude in D major, BuxWV 139
    • Jesu, meines Freudu Bux 60
    • Jesu meins Lebens leben BuxWV 62
    • Gott hilf mir Bux WV 34 (God help me)
    • Passacaglia BuxWV 272 (Classical favorite)

73. Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
  • Years: 1710-1736
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Late Baroque. Operas and sacred music
  • Life: He studied music in Naples where he rose to prominence at a very early age, and became famous for his comic operas.  However he died at a very young from tuberculosis at the age of 26. His comedic opera La Serva Padronna became very influential after his death. His Stabat Mater is considered his ultimate claim to fame. 
  • Instrument: Violin, Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Stabat Mater (Classical favorite)
    • La serva padrona (The Maid turned Mistress)
    • Lo frate 'nnamorato (The Brother in Love)
    • Salve Regina in C minor
    • L'Olimpiade
    • Flaminio

72. Luigi Boccherini
  • Years: 1743-1805
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Classical, rococo, gallant
  • Life: Italian composer who spent much of his life in Spain. His music has the iconic classical chamber sound to it with an emphasis on the string harmonies. His music has a quality of elegance to it, the stuff of high-noised bourgeoisie tea-parties. But still very relaxing music ideal for a high class sophisticated setting. Boccherini puts the class in classical. 
  • Instrument: Cello, violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Minuet in E Major- String Quintet Op 11. No 5 (Classical Favorite) 
    • Night Music of the Streets of Madrid
    • Guitar Quintet No 4 in D Major- Fandango (Famous Spanish Guitar piece)
    • Cello Concerto in B-flat Major 
    • Stabat Mater
    • Symphony in D Minor Op 12, No 4 

71. Vincenzo Bellini
  • Years: 1801-1835
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Romantic. 
  • Life: He learned music from his father and grandfather before beginning to study at the conservatory in Naples. His opera Il Pirata brought him recognition and fame in 1827. He became well known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named the “Swan of Catania”. He was a quintessential composer of Bel Canto opera.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Norma Act 1: Casta Diva (Classical favorite)
    • I Capuleti ed I Montecchi
    • La sonnambula
    • Il Pirata
    • Norma
    • Beatrice di Tenda
    • I Puritani

70. Carl Orff
  • Years: 1895-1982
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Modern, neoclassicism
  • Life: Best known for Carmina Burana with it's passionate and haunting operatic style. This opera is filled with powerful rhythm, percussion, and vocals. A fair case of O Fortuna being a one-hit-wonder could almost be made, but he also had some other good compositions. 
  • Instrument: Piano, percussion
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Carmina Burana: O Fortuna (Classical powerhouse)
    • Carmina Burana: Fortune plango vulnera
    • Catulli Carminia
    • Trionfo di Afrodite
    • Die Kluge
    • Der Mond
    • Antigonae

69. Johann Pachelbel
  • Years: 1653-1706
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Baroque
  • Life: German composer and organist who helped establish the foundations of the Baroque movement. He is most famous for his Canon in D, which is at a much higher level then the rest of his work. This could almost label him as a one-hit wonder, however he still had many other powerful organ pieces.
  • Instrument: Organ, harpsichord
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Canon in D (Also known as Pachelbel's Cannon. Classical Favorite).
    • Chaconne in F Minor
    • Toccata in E Minor 
    • Fugues on the Manificat
    • Musical Thoughts on Death

68. Arnold Schoenberg
  • Years: 1874-1951
  • Nationality: Austrian

  • Musical Style: Late Romanticism, Expressionism.
  • Life: Born in Vienna to a Jewish family he was mostly a self taught musician before he moved to America. He began with a taste of the Romantic quality but later transitioned into more experimental sounds that bordered into the dissonance territory. He famously invented the twelve-tone compositional technique Extremely superstitious; Had triskaidekaphobia, fear of the number 13. He was born on September 13 and died on a Friday the 13 at the age of 76. 
  • Instrument- Piano, Violin, cello
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Notturno for Strings and Harp (Classical favorite)
    • Verklarte Nacht (Transfigured Night)
    • Pierrot Lunaire
    • Erwartung
    • Gurre-Lieder
    • Survivor from Warsaw

67. César Franck
  • Years: 1822-1890
  • Nationality: Belgian
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic. Symphonic, chamber, keyboard
  • Life: Born in Liege, Belgium he later moved to Paris where he became a famous organist, composer, and teacher. He spent most of his time at the Sainte-Clotide Baslica in Paris where he inspired many great French composers. 
  • Instrument: Organ, Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Violin Sonata in A Major FWV 8
    • Symphony in D Minor
    • Symphonic Variations
    • Panis Angelicus (Classical Favorite)
    • Hulda (opera)

66. Heinrich Schutz
  • Years: 1585-1672 
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Early Baroque; sacred vocal music, polychoral music, borderline Renaissance
  • Life: He is considered one of the early transitional musicians from Renaissance into Baroque (alongside Monteverde). He studied music in Venice with Giovanni Gabrieli (in my top 50 Early Musicians list). He lived during the terrible Thirty Years War which disrupted much of the civil life in Germany. I especially like his piece Selig sind die Toten with heavy Renaissance elements.    
  • Instrument: Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Op 11: No 18, Die Himmel
    • Musical Funeral Service
    • Psalms of David
    • Lord Now Let Your Servant Die in Peace
    • Selig sind die Toten SWV 391 (Classical favorite)

65. Benjamin Britten
  • Years: 1913-1976
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: Orchestral, choral, vocal, chamber, instrumental, and film music
  • Life: Considered a child prodigy he quickly excelled with many operas to become one of Britain's top classical musicians. His partnership with Peter Pears helped define his musical success. Britten was greatly affected by the horrors of WWII which helped influence some of his more experimental somewhat somber music. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Classical favorite)
    • Rejoice in the Lamb
    • War Requiem
    • Billy Budd (opera)
    • Turn of the Screw (opera)
    • Albert Herring (chamber opera)
    • Curlew River (church parable)
    • Peter Grimes (opera)
    • A Ceremony of Carols

64. Jules Massenet
  • Years: 1842-1912
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Romantic. 
  • Life: He studied at the Paris Conservatoire before become one of the leading composers in France. He wrote around 25 operas including Manon, Werther, and Thais as his most famous. He is best known for his operas, oratorios, cantatas, ballets, orchestral compositions, incidental music, song collections, and cycles.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Thais Act II- Meditation (Classical Favorite!)
    • Manon Act II- Adieu, notre petite table
    • Werther Act III- Pourquoi me reveiller
    • Manon Act III- Gavotte: Obeissons quand leur voix appelle
    • Esclarmonde
    • Le Cid
    • Don Quichotte
    • Elegie
    • Cendrillon

63. Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges
  • Years: 1745-799
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Classical, gallant
  • Life: He was an accomplished composer, violinist, and swordsman born in the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. His father was a plantation owner and his mother was an enslaved Senegalese woman, thus giving him a unique mestizo race. However his father still trained him in many arts of which he excelled in music. He quickly became a prominent figure in Parisian life and conducted many orchestras, concertos, and operas. He was famously regarded as the Black Mozart and is even portrayed in the film Chevalier as having a violin duel with Mozart. He lived an extraordinary life, was a friend of Marie Antoinette and later he led a black regiment in the French Revolution Wars.
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Violin Concerto No 10 in G Major-Largo
    • Violin Concerto No 2 in A Major Op 5
    • Violin Concerto in D Major No 2 Adagio
    • Violin Concerto in D Major Op 2 No 2- Rondeau
    • L'Amant anonyme
    • Sympony Op 11 No 1 in G Major
    • Violin Concerto in G Major Op 8 No 2 (Clasical favorite. In the film Chevalier)

62. Carl Maria von Weber
  • Years: 1786-1826
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Early Romantic. 
  • Life: Born to a theatrical family he was surrounded by art and music as a child. He eventually became a great pianist, conductor, composer, and director of the German opera in Dresden. His greatest breakthrough came with the opera Der Freischutz which was a celebration of German folk and mythological traditions. He had major contribution to vocal choral music and was very influential to the work of Richard Wagner. 
  • Instrument: Piano, Guitar
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Der Freischutz Overture (Classical favorite. His most famous opera)
    • Euryanthe
    • Oberon
    • Konzertstuck in F Minor
    • Invitation to Dance
    • Die Drei Pintos

61. Alexander Scriabin
  • Years: 1872-1915
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Romanticism, Mystical, Experimental
  • Life: Russian composer and virtuoso pianist who was heavily influenced by the works of Chopin. He later got deep into mysticism and incorporated this into his musical transformation. Scriabin developed a highly lyrical and idiosyncratic tonal language as well as an experimental form of contemplative mystical music. His music is quite gentle and soothing almost like something right out of a dream. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • No 21 in B-Flat Major
    • Piano concerto in F sharp minor Op 20
    • Symphony No 1 in E major
    • The Poem of Ecstasy
    • The Poem of Fire
    • Etude Op 2 No 1
    • Etude in D-sharp minor Op 8 No 12
    • Prelude in B-Flat Major Op 11, No 21 (Classical favorite. Very dreamlike)

60.  Arcangelo Corelli
  • Years: 1653-1713
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Baroque era; beautiful flow of melody and a mannerly treatment of the accompanying parts
  • Life: He was one of the more prominent composers and violinists of the Baroque Age based in Italy. He is considered one of the pioneers of the concerto grosso that emphasized the violin. His music became famous across Europe throughout his lifetime and inspired many great composers most notably Handel.  
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Concerto Gross in G Minor Op 6 No 8 (Christmas Concerto)
    • Conerto Grossi Op 6 No 1 (Classical Favorite) 
    • Violin Sonatas Op 5
    • Sonata No 12. La Folia
    • Trio Sonatas Op 3
    • Trio Sonatas Op 1

59. Jean-Baptiste Lully
  • Years: 1632-1687
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Master of French Baroque Style; known for its power, liveliness, and fast movement
  • Life: Born in Italy, he later moved to France where he grew in fame. He displayed multiple talents in violin, dancing, and composition. He later came under the service of King Louis XIV which he spent most of his career. He was heavily involved in French Opera and theatre and worked closely with the famed playwright Moliere. He became a leading figure of the French Baroque movement.  
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Armide
    • Phaeton
    • Acis et Galatee
    • Atys 
    • Le Bourgeois gentilhomme- Chaconne des Scaramouches (Classical favorite. Comedy with Moliere)
    • Te Deum

58. Philip Glass
  • Years: 1937-present
  • Nationality: American 
  • Musical Style: Modern minimalism, contemporary classical, movie scores
  • Life: One of the most influential American composer of the 20th century. He is well known for his minimalist piano style and gradual musical structure. He has made many contributions to opera, film scores, and symphonic music. I especially love his  music in the soundtrack of The Truman Show and The Illusionist
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Hours: An Unwelcomed friend
    • Glassworks Opening (Classical favorite)
    • String Quartet No 3- Mishima (Classical favorite)
    • Anthem Part 2 (Love this piece from the Truman Show!)
    • Truman Sleeps
    • Orphee: Act 1: III- La chambre d'Orphee
    • Metamorphosis
    • The Illusionist (Love this theme music)
    • Life in the Mountains (Perfect closing to an amazing movie with amazing musical score)

57. Marin Marais
  • Years: 1656-1728
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Baroque
  • Life: He studied under Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe to become one of the greatest viol da gamba musicians in history. He became one of the leading court composers during the French Baroque age and even served in the court of the Sun-King Louis XIV. He published many works and even learning books on playing the viola da gamba. His legacy received even more fame after the popular 1991 French film Tous les Mantins du Monde. His music is quite expressive and passionate and one of my newest favorite discoveries. It really reminds me of the eerie video game Plague's Tale.  
  • Instrument: Viola da gamba
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Suite No 7 in G major No 92-Prelude Lentement (Classical favorite) 
    • Les Folies d'Espagne (Classical favorite) 
    • Sonnerie de Sainte Genevieve du Mont de Paris
    • Les Voix humaines
    • La Reveuse
    • Le Badinage
    • La Brillante
    • Le Labryinthe
    • Alcione: Suite of Dances

56. Béla Bartók
  • Years: 1881-1945
  • Nationality: Hungarian
  • Musical Style: Hungarian Classical folk music 
  • Life: He became an influential composer of the modern ear estabishing a rich distinctive Hungarian sound. He also celebrated eastern European folk culture in his music. He worked alongside fellow Hungarian musician Zoltan Kodaly to study and produce an authentic Eastern European sound (some of which can be somewhat eerie and unsettling). For this reason he is considered as one of the pioneers of ethnomusicology, the study of musical folk traditions, ritual, and culture. He later emigrated to the United States during WWII and died in 1945. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Bluebeard's Castle
    • Romanian Folk Dances (Classical favorite)
    • The Wooden Prince
    • The Miraculous Mandarin
    • Piano Concerto No. 1
    • Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta (In the 1980 horror film The Shining)
    • String Quartet No. 4
    • Concerto for Orchestra
    • Diverrimento for String Orchestra

55.  Charles Gounod
  • Years: 1818-1893
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Writer of Sacred Music
  • Life: He studied music at the Paris Conservatoire where he became mostly inspired by church Renaissance music. As a devout Catholic he pursued a career in musical composition with an emphasis on the sacred music. His first major breakthrough came with his operatic masterpiece Faust. However his true greatest claim to fame is his version of the Ave Maria as well as the national anthem of the Vatican City. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Ave Maria (Classic favorite!)
    • Faust: Jewel Song
    • Romeo et Juliette
    • Pontifical Anthem (National Anthem of Vatican City)
    • Funeral March of a Marionette  (Theme music of the TV show Alfred Hitchcock Presents)

54. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach
  • Years: 1714-1788
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Baroque, Classical
  • Life: He was the son of the great Johann Sebastian Bach whom he studied music under as well as law. He eventually chose music as his perferred career of choice and due to name recognition found a place serving Frederick the Great of Prussia. CPE Bach however eventually established his own reputation as a revered musician and and keyboard virtuoso. He developed his own original expressive style that was admired by many (including Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven). He played a crucial role in the transition from Baroque to Classical
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Die Israeliten in der Wuste (The Israelites in the Desert)
    • Solfeggio in C minor, H 220 (Classical favorite)
    • Keyboard Concerto in D minor Wq. 23
    • Magnificat in D major, Wq. 215
    • Hamburg Symphonies Wq. 182
    • Flute Concerto in D minor Wq. 22
    • Sonata in A minor

53. Alessandro Scarlatti
  • Years: 1660-1725
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Baroque
  • Life: Considered one of the most famous Italian opera masters of the Baroque age, most notably from the Neapolitan school. He composed over 100 operas and chamber cantatas best regarded for powerful vocalists. He influenced many composers most notably Handel. I especially enjoy his piece Dormi o filmine, albeit a lesser known work.  
  • Instrument:
  • Famous Compositions:
    • O Cessate Di Piagarmi (Classical favorite. Beautiful expressive vocals)
    • La Giuditta- Dormi o fulmine (Classical favorite)
    • Gia il sole da Gange
    • La Griselda (One of his best known operas)
    • Il Primo Omicidio
    • Messa di Santa Cecilia
    • La Folia in D minor

52. Jacques Offenbach
  • Years: 1819-1880
  • Nationality: German, French
  • Musical Style: Operetta, comic opera, dance music
  • Life: German born composer who later moved to France to become one of the leading figures of French operetta. His operetta's put more emphasis on satire, comedy, and catchy melodies versus the highly orchestrated drama of the operas. He did however also produce more dramatic operas.  Offenbach's greatest claim to fame was his final opera, Tales of Hoffman which premiered after his death in 1881. I really enjoy his piece Barcaolle from that opera. It's fair to say his popular witty operettas inspired the later cabarets that flourished during the Belle Epoque. 
  • Instrument: Cello
  • Famous Composition:
    • Tales of Hoffman: Barcarolle (Classical favorite)
    • Orpheus in the Underworld- Galop infernal (Classical favorite)
    • Le Belle Helene
    • La Grande- Duchesse de Gerolstein
    • La Vie Parisienne (Parisian Life)
    • La Perichole

51. Arvo Pärt
  • Years: 1935-present
  • Nationality: Estonian
  • Musical Style: Modern, contemporary classical, minimalism, tintinnabula technique
  • Life: Born in Estonia he studied modern techniques of experimentalism before he mastered his style of minimalism. Inspired by his Christian Orthodox faith his music is rich in spiritual and contemplative nature. This is actually a fairly recent discovery for me, and I just love his most famous piece Spiegel im Spiegel. It's such a simple piece with only a few piano notes, but it's that beautiful violin that just takes the listener on a meditative journey. 
  • Instrument: Piano, organ, violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Spiegel im Spiegel (Classical Favorite! Mirror in the Mirror). 
    • Fratres
    • Fur Alina
    • Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten
    • Tabula Rosa
    • Magnifcat
    • Passio
    • Te Deum

50. Georg Philipp Telemann
  • Years: 1681-1767
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Baroque Composer; multi-instrumentalist,
  • Life: He was a self-taught musician, against his family wishes. He began to study law yet eventually moved towards music. He settled in Hamburg, and became the musical director of the city's five churches. His first wife died early on, and his second wife had many affairs and was also quite the gambler. He became one of the most famous Baroque composers throughout Europe during his lifetime. His music has that distinctive bourgeois sophisticated quality that defined the Baroque era.  
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Orpheus (Opera)
    • Cantata Cycle
    • Hamburger Admiralitatsmusik
    • Harmonischer Gottes-Dienst
    • Violin Concerto in G Major (Classical favorite)
    • Concerto in D major for Trumpet
    • Tafelmusik Concerto for 3 violions in F Majot (Classical favorite)

49. Bedřich Smetana
  • Years: 1824-1884
  • Nationality: Czech
  • Musical Style: Romantic Nationalism 
  • Life: As a young musician he participated in the 1848 Prague Uprising, which inspired him to write cultural Czech music; He established a nationalist style of Czech music best known for his operas, symphonic cycles, and string quartets. His most famous work the Ma Vlast is a celebration of Czech identity through the flowing river of the Vltava in the beautiful city of Prague. He is considered the crowned jewel of Czech classical music alongside Antonin Dvorak.
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Bartered Bride Overture
    • Ma Vlast- Moldau (All-time Classical favorite!!)
    • The Brandenburgers in Bohemia
    • Dalibor
    • Ma Vlast- Sarka
    • Vyserhrad
    • String Quartet No 1- From my Life
    • The Two Widows
    • Ma Vlast- From Bohemia's Woods and Fields
    • The Kiss
    • Libuse

48. Alexander Borodin
  • Years: 1833-1887
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: 
  • Life: He was a Russian composer and a chemist who was able to succeed at both careers in science and music. He later became a key member of the Five Russians (The Mighty Handful), dedicated to producing a distinctive Russian kind of music. His opera Prince Igor became his claim to fame infusing Russia folk tradition with sweeping romantic music. He is best known for his symphonies, two string quartets, and his opera.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Prince Igor Overture (opera)
    • Polovstian Dances from Prince Igor (Classical Favorite)
    • In the Steppes of Central Asia
    • Nocturne- String Quartet No 2 in D major (Classical Favorite)
    • Symphony No 2 in B Minor
    • Symphony No 1 in E-flat major

47. Johann Strauss II
  • Years: 1825-1899
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Romantic. 
  • Life: He was the son of the great Johann Strauss who had to prove himself before he could establish his own reputation as the famed Waltz King. After his father's death he took over the family orchestra and became one of the leading composers in Europe through name but also skill. He wrote over 500 waltzes and variations with elements of light music, dance music, operettas, polkas, quadrilles, and ballets. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Blue Danube (A Classic Favorite!!)
    • Kaiser-Walzer
    • Tales from the Vienna Woods
    • Tritsh-Tratsh Polka
    • Die Fledermaus (operetta)
    • Der Zigeunerbaron (operetta)
    • Eine Nacht in Venedig (A night in Venice)
    • Voices of Spring Waltz (Classical favorite)
    • Emperor Waltz

46. Henryk Górecki
  • Years: 1933-2010
  • Nationality: Polish
  • Musical Style: Modern minimalism. It has a haunting sorrowful style to it, most famous from his Symphony No 3, Symphony of the Sorrowful Songs. Some of these pieces were included in one of my favorite films To the Wonder. Lento e largo also influenced the music of Children of Men.  
  • Life: Lost his mother at an early age and struggled with hip problems most his life. He studied music at the age of 10 and eventually became the leading figure in the Avant Garde movement. His major breakthrough came at the age of 59, when he composed the Symphony of the Sorrowful Songs in 1992. He 
  • Famous Compositions: 
    • Symphony No 3- Lento- Sostenuto Tranquillo Ma Cantabile (In the film To the Wonder)
    • Symphony No 3- Symphony of Sorrowful Songs- Lento e largo (Classical Favorite)
    • Miserere
    • Totus tuus (written for Pope John Paul II)
    • String Quartet No 1
    • Symphony No 2

45. Edvard Grieg
  • Years: 1843-1907
  • Nationality: Norwegian
  • Musical Style: Romantic Period; Nationalist composer drawing inspiration from Norwegian folk music
  • Life: Just like many other nationalist composers of the time Grieg's claim to fame was creating a Norwegian musical identity. Influenced by folk music and the rural landscapes he created a distinctive type of classical music. His claim to fame was the Peer Gynt, which is the ideal image of a sunset over a peaceful landscape. His wife Nina Hagerup also achieved fame and performed many of his compositions. He is regarded as Norway's greatest classical musician and ideal for peaceful countryside music. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Piano Concerto in A Minor (Classic Favorite)
    • Peer Gynt (Morning Mood, In the Hall of the Mountain King) (Classic Favorite)
    • Lyric Pieces Book 5- Nocturne
    • Lyric Pieces Book 9- Cradle Song
    • Holberg Suite
    • Two Elegiac Melodies
    • String Quartet No 1 in G Minor
    • Wedding Day at Troldhaugen

44. Hector Berlioz
  • Years: 1803-1869
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Modern orchestration 
  • Life: He studied medicine before he switched over to music against his family's wishes. Inspired by Shakespeare he composed his first massive opera the Symphonie fantastique in 1830. He became known for grand scale symphonies with modern orchestration. At one point he performed with over 1000 musicians at a time. His music never really took off during his time in France however did achieve success on an international level. He later wrote a guidebook on modern music, The Treatise on Instrumentation which became an influential to the development of modern orchestral music.   
  • Instrument:
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Symphonie Fantasique- Un Bal (Classical favorite)
    • Harold en Italie
    • Romeo et Juliette
    • Benvenuto Cellini
    • Symphonie fantastique- Dream of a Witches' Sabbath
    • Grande Messe des Morts
    • Les Troyens
    • Beatrice et Benedict
    • Symphonie Fantasique- March to the Scaffold
    • Te Deum Op 20
    • La damnation de Faust Op 24
    • L'enfance du Christ Op 25

43. Aaron Copland
  • Years: 1900-1990
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Modernism, American nationalism, classical Concert and Film Music
  • Life: He was born a Jewish-American however studied music in Paris before he returned to America. He introduced an original modern style that balanced classical structure with American folk traditions. He composed many famous ballets about American life as well as film scores. He was a discrete homosexual and supported the Communist Party of USA before switching to the Democratic Party. He also spoke out against the loss of freedom in the Soviet Union. His music has a distinctive Americana Old West quality to it. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Piano Variations
    • El Salon Mexico
    • Fanfare for the Common Man (classical favorite. Associated with the Olympics)
    • Appalachian Spring (This is a variation on the popular Shaker tune "Simple Gifts", similiar to "Lord of the Dance")
    • Symphony No. 3
    • No 5, Hoe-Down (Classical Favorite)
    • El Salon Mexico
    • Billy the Kid (1938 movie score)

42. Ralph Vaughan Williams
  • Years: 1872-1958
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: English Pastoralism
  • Life: Born into a prominent English family he studied music at the Royal College of Cambridge alongside Charles Villiers Stanford. He integrated English folk tradition into classical music. He was a composer of Symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, sacred music, and film scores; influenced by English folk songs that he set as hymn tunes. He is considered among Britain's all time great composers alongside Edward Elgar, Henry Purcell, and Benjamin Britten. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Lark Ascending (Classical favorite) 
    • A London Symphony No. 2
    • Symphony No. 3
    • Job
    • Serenade to Music
    • Symphony No. 6
    • Antartic Symphony No. 7
    • Symphony No. 9
    • Fantasia on Greensleeves (Classical favorite)
    • Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (Classical favorite) 

41. Erik Satie
  • Years: 1866-1925
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: A colorful style of avant-garde; inspired movements of minimalism, repetition, and the Theater of Absurd
  • Life: Born in Normandy he dropped out of the Paris Conservatoire to pursue his own passions. He struggled with poverty for a good part of his early life earning money as a cabaret pianist in the Montmartre district. He became an eccentric personality who collected umbrellas and invented his own religion. He pioneered a distinctive style of minimalism and contemplative music. Despite his outlandish tastes his music is regarded as true masterwork especially Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Gymnopedies No 1 (Classical favorite)
    • Le piege de Meduse
    • Vexations
    • Gnossiennes No 1 (Classical favorite)
    • Parade
    • La Piege de Meduse

40. Jean Sibelius
  • Years: 1865-1957
  • Nationality: Finnish
  • Musical Style: Romantic music with Finnish identity; master of orchestra that has been described as prodigious
  • Life: Just like many other nationalist composers he helped establish an identity for his native country of Finland. He did this by infusing classical with Finnish folklore tradition from the epic book of poetry the Kalevala. Through his seven masterful symphonies he became Finland's greatest composer. He also became a symbol of their national identity during their struggle for independence from Russia. 
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Andante festivo JS 34 b (Classical favorite)
    • Finlandia
    • Karelia Suite
    • Valse Triste
    • The Swan of Tuonela
    • 13 Pieces for Piano Op 76 No 2 (Classical favorite)
    • Lemminkainen Suite
    • Jungfrun I tornet
    • Symphony No. 7
    • Spring Song
    • Symphony No 2
    • Symphony No 5
    • Violin concerto in D minor

39. Georges Bizet
  • Years: 1838-1875
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: The Romantic era; Known best for his operas; also a fine pianist
  • Life: Born into a French musical family, he studied at the Paris Conservatoire at just nine years old. Despite his natural talent he did not achieve fame and success throughout his life. His most famous opera Carmen was received with mixed reception and he died shortly after at the young age of 36. His music was often considered ahead of it's time and for that reason it grew into some of the most popular operatic music after his death. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Carmen- Habanera (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Carmen- Les toreadors (Classical Favorite)
    • L'Arlesienne (The Girl from Arles)
    • Symphony in C
    • Don Procopio
    • La Jolie fille de Perth
    • Les pecheurs de perles
    • Ivan IV
    • Djmaileh
    • Roma Symphony
    • Jeux d'enfants Op 22. No 3- La poupee
    • Carmen- Seguedille

38. George Gershwin
  • Years: 1898-1937
  • Nationality: American
  • Musical Style: Broadway and classical standards with strong Jazz influence; many popular songs and melodies
  • Life: Born in Brooklyn, New York he rose to fame as a Broadway songwriter before he rose to classical glory. Similar to Bernstein his success spans into popular music, theater music, but also masterful classical compositions. He infused the jazz of the time into sophisticated orchestral music, most famously in his masterpiece Rhapsody in Blue. His music has a unique style of urban jazz modernism that is laced with moody expressions. Some of his other most famous musical theater compositions were Porgy and Bess, Girl Crazy, and Funny Face. Despite dying at the young age of 38 he is celebrated as one of America's most iconic musical composers.  
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Rhapsody in Blue (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Piano Concerto in F
    • An American in Paris (Classical favorite. Later adapted into the 1951 film)
    • Dream Sequence
    • Porgy and Bess- Summertime (Classical jazz favorite)
    • Second Rhapsody
    • Cuban Overture
    • Strike up the Band
    • Catfish Row
    • They Can't Take that Away from Me (original song for the 1937 film Shall we Dance)

37. Edward Elgar
  • Years: 1857-1934
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: Romantic. Orchestral compositions with the violin and cello; choral works, chamber music, and songs.
  • Life: He was mostly self taught as a young man and climbed the musical ranks through his proven skill. His major breakthrough came with his Enigma Variations in 1899. His music incorporates sophisticated and emotional melodies with rich orchestration seen especially in his patriotic marches. He was later appointed Master of the King's Music in 1924 as one of the crowned gems of English musical composers.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Enigma Variations Op 36 Var 9- Nimrod (Classical favorite)
    • Pomp and Circumstance Marches (Classical favorite. Graduation march!)
    • The Dream of the Gerontius
    • Introduction and Allegro
    • Salut d'Amour Op 12 (Classical favorite)
    • Cockaigne Op 40
    • Cello Concerto in E Minor Op 85
    • Dream Children Op 43
    • Falstaff- Symphonic Study in C minor
    • The Apostles
    • The Kingdom
    • Coronation Ode
    • Ein Heldenleben

36. Gustav Holst
  • Years: 1874-1934
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: Operas, ballets, choral hymns, and songs; unconventional use of meter and haunting melodies
  • Life: He worked as a trombonist in a symphony for some time before becoming his own composer and teacher of music at Morley College. He was a close lifelong friend of famed English composer, Ralph Vaugh Williams. His music has a grand scale orchestral sound to it, utilizing themes of English folk, cosmic, and mystical elements. His fascination with astrology is best realized in his magnum opus of The Planets. 
  • Instrument: 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Planets-Jupiter (Classical favorite. Seven movement orchestral suite)
    • 1st Suite in E-flat for Military Band
    • 2nd Suite in F for Military Band
    • Hammesmith
    • The Hymn of Jesus
    • Egdon Heath
    • St. Paul's Suite
    • The Planets- Venus
    • The Planets- Saturn
    • The Planets- Neptune the Mystic (Classical favorite)
    • The Planets- Mars the Bringer of War (Classical favorite. Used in the 1983 film Right Stuff, and very influential on Hans Zimmer's score for Gladiator)

35. Anton Bruckner
  • Years: 1824-1896
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Contemporary Musical Radicalism with rich harmony, complex polyphony, and considerable length. Wrote symphonies, masses, and motets
  • Life: He was a deeply religious person influenced by the music of Bach, Beethoven, and Wagner. He became a successful organist, composer, and teacher. He was later described as being “half-simpleton, half God”. He was never married yet always attracted to younger women. He was especially fond of Wagner and dedicated one of his most famous pieces, the Symphony No 3 to Wagner. 
  • Instrument: Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Symphony No. 1 in C Minor (The Saucy Maid)
    • Symphony No. 3 in D Minor (Wagner Symphony)
    • Symphony No. 4 in E flat Major
    • Symphony No. 5 in B flat Major (Church of Faith)
    • Symphony No. 6 in A Major
    • Locus iste (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No. 7 in E. Major
    • Symphony No. 8 in D Minor (The Apocalyptic)
    • Symphony No. 9 in D Minor
    • Os Justi (Classical favorite)
    • Ave Maria (Classical favorite)
    • Christus factus WAB 11
    • Virga Jesse WAB 52

34. Gioachino Rossini
  • Years: 1792-1868
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Bel canto opera
  • Life: He rose to prominence very quickly as a bel canto opera composer. Before the age of 37 he wrote 39 operas; as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces. He became known as the Italian Mozart and was most recognized for his song-like melodies in his compositions. He retired from opera before 40 and spent his final years in Paris writing vocal and piano arrangements. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Il barbiere di Siviglia- Figaro (The Barber of Seville. Classic Favorite!!)
    • La Cenerentola (Cinderella)
    • Mose in Egitto (Moses in Egypt)
    • Guillaume Tell (William Tell Overture- High Yo Silver!)
    • Armida
    • Tancredi (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Moses in Egypt
    • Semiramide
    • L'italiania in Algeri
    • The Barber of Seville- Una voce poco fa
    • The Thieving Magpie Overture

33. Christoph Willibald Gluck
  • Years: 1714-1787
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Early classical. 
  • Life: He was an opera composer of the early classical period. His defining feature was a softer music that served as backdrop to the drama rather then an overpowering element. This type of reform became prevalent across all forms of musical theatre such as operas and ballets. His style of composition went on to inspire later composers most notably Mozart. 
  • Instrument: Harpsichord and piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Orfeo ed Euridice (Classical favorite)
    • Alceste Overture (Classical favorite)
    • Iphigenie en Narcisse
    • Iphigenie en Tauride
    • Iphigenie en Aulide
    • Armide
    • Paride ed Elena
    • Dance of the Blessed Spirits (Classical favorite)

32. Maurice Ravel
  • Years: 1875-1937
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Impressionist music; melodies, orchestral, and instrumental textures and effects; piano music, chamber music, vocal music, orchestral music;
  • Life: He studied music at the Paris Conservatoire and eventually became one of France's most celebrated composers of the early 1900s. He is often associated with the new style of musical-impressionism similar to Claude Debussy. He was known for his meticulous attention to detail and perfection. His Bolero was his powerful claim to fame but he also had many melancholic songs. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Jeux d'eau
    • Miroirs: Une barque sur l'ocean
    • Le tombeau de Couperin
    • Pavane pour una infante defunte (Classical favorite from the film Dark Knight Rises)
    • Gaspard de la nuit
    • Daphnis et Chloe- Lever du jour (Classical favorite)
    • Bolero M. 81 (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Prelude M. 65
    • La Valse
    • Piano Concerto in G major
    • String Quartet in F major

31. Jean-Philippe Rameau
  • Years: 1683-1764
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Baroque era; opera, harpsichord
  • Life: He worked as a common organist well into his 40s before he gained any recognition. His first breakthrough opera was Hippolyte et Aricie which debuted in 1733 and established him as leading composer of French Opera. He later served in the court of King Louis XV and was admired for his soothing and refined Baroque music. He was also an acclaimed musical theorist which is best reflected in his book Treatise on Harmony, one of the most popular works of Western musical theory. 
  • Instrument: Harpsichord and organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Arts and the Hours (Classical favorite)
    • Hippolyte et Aricie
    • Pieces de clavecin en concerts
    • Tristes apprets, pales flambeaux (Classical favorite. From the 2006 film Marie Antoniette)
    • Castor et Pollux
    • Daradanus
    • Les Indes Galantes (opera-ballet, included in 2006 film Marie Antoiniette)
    • Platee
    • Aux languers d'Apollon (classical favorite. Included in the 2006 film Marie Antoinette)
    • Anacreon
    • Zephire
    • Nais
    • Zoroastre (opera)
    • Suite in G Major RCT 6 No 14

30. Henry Purcell
  • Years: 1659-1695
  • Nationality: English
  • Musical Style: Baroque composer of secular and sacred music. Mixtures of French and Italian elements, with an English form
  • Life: He is considered one of the greatest English composers of the Baroque Era. Born in Westinister London he served as a chorister at the Chapel Royal where he rose to the position of organist at Westminster Abbey. From this post he began to compose wonderful music for the royal court, churches, and theater. He blended English style with French and Italian styles. 
  • Instrument: Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Dido and Aeneas- When I am Laid in Earth (Classical favorite)
    • King Arthur (opera)
    • The Fairy Queen (masque, semi-opera)
    • Abdelazer Z 570 2. Rondeau (Classical favorite. Inspired some of Britten's work)
    • Music for a While (Classical favorite)
    • Funeral Music for Queen Mary
    • Chacony in G Minor
    • Hail! Bright Cecilia
    • Come, Ye Sons of Art

29. Giacomo Puccini
  • Years: 1858-1924
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic
  • Life: He was born into a family of church musicians and later studied at the Milan Conservatory. From there on he became one of the most successful opera composers in history, best known for his masterpiece Turandot. He wrote  many famous operas with sweeping melodies, emotional storytelling, and powerful orchestral pieces. He also various forms of sacred music, chamber music, and songs for voice and piano. His greatest claim to fame was the operatic piece Nessun Dorma, however his popularity produced many familiar melodies. His music has that distinctive powerful Italian operatic sound to it with very strong vocals, often led by the great tenor Luciano Pavarotti. 
  • Instrument: Famous Compositions:
    • La Boheme
    • Tosca
    • Madama Butterfly- Humming Chorus (Classical favorite)
    • Turandot
    • Gianni Schicchi- O mio babbino caro/ (Classical favorite)
    • Nessun Dorma (Classic Favorite)
    • La fanciulla del West
    • La Rondine
    • Il trittico
    • Un bel di, vedremo
    • Messa di Gloria

28. Antonín Dvořák
  • Years: 1841-1904
  • Nationality: Czech
  • Musical Style: Romantic Music; operas, symphonies, choral music, and chamber music.
  • Life: Born in Prague he rose from a middle class upbringing to become one of the leading composers of the Romantic Era. He helped establish a Czech national identity by incorporating idioms of folk music from Moravia and his native land of Bohemia. He later moved to the United States for a few years where he produced some of his best known works, such as New World Symphony and American String Quartet. 
  • Instrument: Violin, viola, organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Serenade for Strings in E Major Op 22 B52 (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 9- New World Symphony- Allegro con fuoco
    • Slavonic Dances
    • Humoresques No 7- Op101 B187 (Classical favorite)
    • American String Quartet
    • Cello Concerto in B Minor
    • Symphony No 8
    • New World Symphony- Largo (Classical favorite. Adapted into the song "Going Home" )
    • Rusalka- Song to the Moon
    • Symphony No. 1

27. Modest Mussorgsky
  • Years: 1839-1881
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Romanticism. 
  • Life: He began his passion for music while studying at a military academy. He later became one of the most influential members of Russian Five. He worked proudly with the others to help establish a Russian identity in classical composition, inspired by Russian history, folklore, and nationalist themes. Despite his early success in his compositions he struggled with alcoholism and financial struggles and died at the young age of 42. His Night on Bald Mountain has become an eerie classic thanks to the Walt Disney film Fantasia. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Memories of Promenade II 
    • Boris Godunov (His most famous opera)
    • Night on Bald Mountain (Classic Favorite; in the 1941 movie “Fantasia”)
    • Pictures at an Exhibition (Classical Favorite)
    • Khovanshchina- Dawn on the Moscow River Prelude (Classical favorite)
    • The Fair at Sorochyntsi
    • Songs and Dances of Death

26. Gabriel Fauré
  • Years: 1845-1924
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Harmonic, Melodic style way ahead of its time; Vocal music, piano works
  • Life: He grew to fame as a pianist, organist, and composer in France. He helped define the modern nationalist sound of France's classical identity. Towards the end of his career he  became director of the Paris Conservatoire from 1905 to 1920. His beautiful piece Pie Jesu is one of my all time favorite works of classical music. 
  • Instrument: Piano, Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Trios Melodies (Apres un reve; Hymne; Barcarolle)
    • Pie Jesu- Requiem in D Minor Op 48 (All-time classical favorite! Pure angelic vocals)
    • Penelope (opera)
    • Dolly Suite Op 56 (Classical favorite)
    • Pavane (Classical favorite)
    • Sicilienne Op 78 (Classical favorite)
    • In Paradisum
    • Nocturnes
    • Cantique de Jean Racine
 
25. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
  • Years: 1844-1908
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Romantic, Russian nationalism
  • Life: Born into a naval family he sailed around the world at a very young age. He was later inspired by the musician Mily Balakirev and joined the Mighty Five Handful despite not having much musical training or background. He excelled in composition nonetheless and worked to create a specifically Russian style of music that mixed folk song with exotic harmony and rhythmic elements. He eventually became a professor at the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1871 where he learned musical theory and produced some of his most famous compositions. He worked alongside other great musicians of the five including Mussorgsky and Borodin. He was also a teacher of Glazunov and the great Stravinsky.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Tale of Tsar Saltan-The Flight of the Bumblebee (Classic Favorite!)
    • The Tsar's Bride (Opera)
    • May Night (Opera)
    • The Snow Maiden
    • Kashchey the Immortal
    • Sadko- Song of India (Classical favorite)
    • Russian Easter Festival Overture
    • Scherherazade-Sea and Sinbad's Ship (Classical favorite. Symphonic suite)
    • Scherherazade Op 35- The Young Prince and the Young Princess
    • Scheherazade-The Tale of the Kalendar Prince (Classical favorite)
    • Capriccio Espagnol
    • Antar (symphony orchestra)

24. Camille Saint-Saëns
  • Years: 1835-1921
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic Composer
  • Life: He was a child prodigy who gave his first public conert at the age of 10. He was renown for his memory and technicality at the piano. He later studied at the Paris Conservatoire and began a career as an organist. He helped establish the Societe Nationale de Musique as a network of French composers. His music has the definitive expressive qualities of the Romantic era. He produced an impressive range of comedic playful stories to heavier, dramatic ones, with even darker themes. 
  • Instrument: Organ, Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Carnival of Animals- The Swan (Classical favorite)
    • The Carnival of Animals- Aquarium (Classical favorite. In the 1978 film Days of Heaven)
    • Danse macabre (Classical favorite. Halloween all the way!)
    • Samson and Delilah
    • Piano Concerto No. 2
    • Havanaise
    • The Carnival of the Animals (In the film Fantasia 2000)
    • Introduction and Rondo capriccioso
    • Symphony No. 3 (Organ Symphony)
    • Pieano Concerto No 5- The Egyptian
    • Requiem

23. Gustav Mahler
  • Years: 1860-1911
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Bridged the Romantic Era with Modernism
  • Life: Born in Bohemia he became one of the leading conductors in Europe throughout the late Romantic Era. He became a director at the Vienna Court Opera for some time before finishing his career in New York. His music is rich with emotional meaning, ranging from joy to sorrow. He wrote nine symphonies that defined his vast orchestral sounds that transitioned from Romantic to Modern style. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Symphony No. 5, IV Adagietto (Classical favorite)
    • Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen- Songs of a Wayfarer
    • Des Knaben Wunderhorn -The Youth's Magic Horn
    • Lieder und Gesange - Songs and Airs
    • Symphony No 2- Resurrection (Classical favorite. In the film Maestro)
    • Kindertotenlieder- Songs on the Death of Children
    • Symphony No 3- What Love Tells Me (Clasical favorite)
    • Das Lied von der Erde - The Song of Earth
    • Symphony No 6- Tragic
    • Symphony No 8- Symphony of a Thousand
    • Symphony No 9
    • Ruckert-Lieder

22. Giuseppe Verdi
  • Years: 1813-1901
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Romantic Composer of Opera
  • Life: He grew to become another of the most iconic Italian opera composers alongside Puccini. His first major breakthrough came in the production of Nabucco in 1842 followed by many other successes most notably Rigoletto and La Traviata. He was also considered a national hero for his public cries for Italian unification. His music is the definitive Italian operatic quality of grand orchestra and vocals best demonstrated by the famous Luciano Pavarotti. 
  • Instruments:
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Rigoletto- La Donne e' mobile (Classical favorite) 
    • Nabucco (Va, Pensiero)
    • La Traviata- Libiamo ne' lieti calci  (Classical favorite. “Drinking Song”)
    • Aida (Grand March)
    • Requiem- Dies Irae (Classical favorite)
    • Nabucco- Va pensiero (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves)
    • Otello- Ave Maria
    • Il Trovatore

21. Claudio Monteverdi
  • Years: 1567-1643
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Renaissance, Baroque
  • Life: He is considered one of the major figures that led the transition from Renaissance music to the Baroque period. He developed the new basso continuo technique as well as Renaissance polyphony. He is also credited with writing one of the earliest known operas, L'Orfeo in 1607. He later became the music director of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice where he continued to develop groundbreaking Baroque and sacred music. The vocal compositions in many of his works are truly divine. 
  • Instrument: Viola da gamba
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Zefiro torna e di saovi accenti SV 251 (All time Classical favorite!)
    • L'Orfeo (one of the earliest operas)
    • L'Arianna
    • Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (The return of Ulysses to his Homeland)
    • L'incoronazione di Poppea- The Coronation of Poppea (Classical favorite)
    • Vespero della Beata Vergine 1610 (Vespers for the Blessed Virgin)
    • Selva Morale e Spirituale
    • Vespers of 1610- Duo Seraphim (Classical favorite)
    • Lamento della Ninfa- The Cry of the Nymph (Classical favorite)
    • Lamento d'Arianna
    • Si dolce el tormento- So Sweet the Torment

20. Richard Strauss
  • Years: 1864-1949
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic era 
  • Life: Strauss rose to international fame, before the rise of the Nazi Party. He was most famously appointed as Reichsmusikkammer in 1933, president of the music bureau of the Third Reich. He even wrote the Olympic theme of the 1936 Berlin summer games. Despite his ties to the Nazi Regime he was mostly apolitical and focused mostly on his music. He was considered a key figure in the transition from Romantic to early modern era, where he implemented orchestration combined with advanced harmonic styles. He has a similar Wagner epic quality in his music, remembered best for his operas and his Sunrise piece "Thus Spoke Zarathustra". 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose, a comic opera)
    • Salome
    • Four Last Songs
    • Death and Transfiguration (Classical favorite) 
    • Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks
    • Also sprach Zarathustra- Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Classical favorite. Opening from the 1968 film A Space Odyssey)
    • An Alpine Symphony (Classical favorite)
    • Don Quixote Op 35
    • Metamorphosen (composition of 23 solo string instruments)
    • Olympische Hymne (Anthem of the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin)
    • Domestic Symphony
    • Elektra (opera)
    • Don Juan Op 20
    • Ein Heldenleben - A Hero's Life
    • Friedenstag
    • Daphne
    • Capriccio

19. Robert Schumann
  • Years: 1810-1856
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Lieders, symphonies, operas, orchestral, choral, and chamber works.
  • Life: Began as a virtuoso pianist and after a hand injury focused his energy on musical composition. Married his instructor's daughter, Clara Wieck, who also had a respectable musical career. Together they became one of the most important musical duos in Germany of the time. He composed many symphonies, piano works, chamber music and art songs. He spent the last two years of his life in a mental institute after trying to commit suicide. He died at the young age of 46.
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Carnaval Op 9
    • Fantasiestucke Op 73 (Classical favorite. Beautiful violin piece)
    • Symphonic Studies Op 13
    • Davidsbundlertanze Op 6
    • Kinderszene Op 15 (Classical favorite)
    • Kreisleriana
    • Symphony No 3
    • Abendlied Op 85 No 12
    • Adagio and Allegro Op 70 (Classical favorite)
    • Mondnacht
    • Piano concerto in A minor (Classical favorite)

18. Felix Mendelssohn
  • Years: 1809-1847
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Classical and Romantic. 
  • Life: He was the grandson of great philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, born into a wealthy Jewish family and recognized early as a musical prodigy. His family later converted to Christianity and Felix was baptized as a Lutheran. Throughout his brief career he wrote many famous symphonies, concerti, oratorios, piano music, chamber music, and overtures. Although he started at a very early age he also died at the young age of 38, most likely due to strokes, anxiety, and exhaustion. His sister Fanny was also a famous composer, who also died around the same age just a few years before him. 
  • Instrument: Piano, Organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • A Midsummer Night's Dream Overture (Classical favorite)
    • Italian Symphony- Symphony No 4 in A Major Op 90 (Classical favorite) 
    • Songs without Words- Book 2, Op 30, No 7 (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 3 in A Minor Op 56- Scottish Symphony
    • Hebrides Overture- Fingal's Cave (Classical favorite)
    • Violin Concerto in E Minor Op 64 (Classical favorite) 
    • String Octet
    • Camacho's Wedding
    • Songs without Words- Book VI Opus 67 No 2

17. Sergei Prokofiev
  • Years: 1891-1953
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Modernism. Neoclassicism. Operas, ballets, chamber works, and piano music
  • Life: Born in the Russian Empire who displayed great talent as a young student at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. During the Russian Revolution he fled with his family to live in the United States and Europe where he continued to study and perform music. When he returned to the Soviet Union in 1936 he began to produce some of his most famous compositions including his famous ballet of Romeo and Juliet as well as Peter and the Wolf. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Romeo and Juliet Op 64- Dance of the Knights (Classical favorite ballet)
    • Chout Op. 21
    • Symphony No. 1-The Classical
    • Love for Three Oranges
    • Symphony No 5
    • Piano Concerto No. 3
    • The Fiery Angel (Opera)
    • Symphony No. 2
    • Cinderella's Waltz (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No. 3
    • Peter and the Wolf (Classical favorite ballet)
    • Symphony No. 6
    • Symphony No. 7
    • Alexander Vesky (Score for the 1938 Russian historical epic film)
    • Lieutenant Kije Suite (Classical favorite)
    • Ivan the Terrible (Film score for the 1945 film)
    • Piano Sonata No 7

16. Claude Debussy

  • Years: 1862-1918
  • Nationality: French
  • Musical Style: Impressionism, Romantic, Modern
  • Life: He studied at the Paris Conservatoire before becoming one of the most prominent figures in the field of impressionist music. His unique method is noted for its sensory component, not formed around one key or pitch. He was inspired by all forms of art ranging from visual art, paintings, poetry, nature, and subtle expression. He died in Paris during WW1 of cancer at the age of 55. He helped define the Belle Epoque which saw a transition from Romantic music to modernist music. His Claire de lune has became of elegant piano and true romantic beauty. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Deux Arabesques (Classical favorite) 
    • Suite bergamasque (Claire de lune) (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Prelude a lapres midi dun faune
    • Nocturnes
    • Reverie, CD 76 (Classical favorite)
    • La Mer
    • Children's Corner Suite
    • Preludes Book 1-La cathedral engloutie "The Sunken Cathedral"
    • Preludes Book II- Bruyeres
    • String Quartet in G minor
    • Preludes Book 1: No 8, La Fille aux cheveus de lin "The Girl with the Flaxen Hair"- (Classical favorite)

15. Dmitri Shostakovich
  • Years: 1906-1975
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Tonal, Romantic, Chromaticism,
  • Life: He studied music at an early age at the Petrograd Conservatory. Achieved fame under the patronage of Vladimir Lenin and Stalin, however he later had difficulties with the Stalinist Bureaucracy. Although his work was temporarily denounced it ultimately became the defining music of the Soviet Union. He famously played a concerto during the Siege of Leningrad while the musicians were starving, thus making him a symbol of the resistance and a national hero. It's hard not to think of Communist Russia every time I hear that iconic patriotic march the Second Waltz. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • 5th Symphony
    • 7 Symphony- Leningrad (Classical favorite. He played at the Siege of Leningrad)
    • Suite from the Gadfly- Romance (Classical favorite)
    • 8th Quartet
    • Piano Concerto No 2 in F Major Op 102 (Classical faovrite)
    • Symphony No 10 in E minor Op 93
    • 15th Quartet
    • Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District Op 29
    • Suite for Variety Orchestra- The Russian Waltz No. 2 (Classic Favorite)
    • Cello Conerto No 1. in E flat major
    • String Quartet No 3 in F major Op 73 (eerie violins)
    • Piano quintet in G minor Op 57
    • Piano Trio No 2 in E Minor Op 67

14. Joseph Haydn
  • Years: 1732-1809
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Classical
  • Life: He was born into a poor devout Catholic family where he began his musical start in th children's choir at St. Stephen's Cathedral. He spent time as a freelance musician climbing the ranks in the musical epicenter of Vienna in the late 1700s of which he eventually befriended Mozart. He later traveled to England where he wrote one of his most famous pieces, the London Symphonies. He was well known for his wit and great sense of humor and is considered the Father of the Symphony and String Quartet; Piano Trio, and Sonata Form.
  • Instrument: Piano, violin, organ
  • Famous Compositions:
    • String Quartet No 62 (Classical favorite. German national anthem)
    • Op. 33 No 2 in E Flat major- The Joke
    • Op. 50 No 3 in E Flat major
    • Symphony No 101 in D major- The Clock
    • Op 50 No 1 in B flat Major
    • Symphony No 45- Farewell Symphony (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 94. - Surprise Symphony (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 104. -The London Symphony (Classical favorite)
    • String Quartet Op 76 No 3- The Emperor
    • Die Schopfung- The Creation
    • Cello Concerto No 1 in C Major (Classical favorite)
    • Trumpet Concerto in E Flat Major Hob
    • Nelson Mass

13. Franz Schubert
  • Years: 1797-1828
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Early era of Romantic music; 
  • Life: He was born in Vienna the son of a school teacher where he showed great talent at an early age. He later studied under Salieri to become a skilled pianist, violinist, and singer. He briefly worked as a teacher himself before completely devoting himself to his music. Throughout his life he composed over 600 lieder, nine symphonies, liturgical music, operas, incidental music, chamber, and solo piano music. Despite being close with some of the greatest German artists of the time he never achieved great fame and success until after his death at the young age of 31.
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Standchen S 560 (Classical favorite)
    • Wanderer Fantasy Op. 15
    • Minute in A major D 334
    • Alfonso und Estrella
    • Impromptus D 899 Op 90
    • Die Nacht D deest (Classical favorite. Beautiful cello)
    • Fierrabras D. 796
    • Rosamunde
    • Die schone Mullerin
    • Piano Quintet in A major (Trout). D667 (Classical favorite)
    • Winterreise
    • Ellens dritter Gesang (Ave Maria) (Classic Favorite)
    • Symphony No. 9
    • Death and the Maiden Quartet
    • Erlkonig D 328
    • String Quintet in C major D 956 (Classical favorite)

12.  Igor Stravinsky
  • Years: 1882-1971
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Neoclassism. Modernism. Extremely diverse, ballets, rhythmic
  • Life: His father was a successful opera singer in St. Petersburg where Igor grew up surrounded by music. He eventually studied under Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov where he began to get serious about composition. He spent time living in Russia, Switzerland, France, and America. After the Russian Revolution he moved to Paris where he wrote some of his most famous works, The Firebird, Petrushka, and the Rite of Spring. During this time he also had a high-profile affair with Coco-Chanel. He spent the final years of his life in America continuing to evolve his music into modernism and neoclassicism. While he was a devout member of the Russian Orthodox Church a lot of his music has a rather dark and eerie element to it.
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Firebird- K10 1919 Suite VI. Finale (Classical Favorite)
    • Petrushka
    • Violin Concerto in D
    • Symphony in Three Movements
    • The Rite of Spring-Introduction (Classic Favorite, in the 1941 movie Fantasia)
    • The Rite of Spring- The Augurs of Spring (Classical Favorite)
    • The Rite of Spring- Spring Rounds (Classical Favorite)
    • The Rite of Spring Part 2- Introduction (Classical Favorite)
    • The Rite of Spring Part 2- Sacrificial Dance (Classical Favorite)
    • Ave Maria (Classical favorite)
    • Pulcinella
    • Symphony of Psalms
    • The Rakes Progress
    • Apollon musagete

11. George Frederic Handel
  • Years: 1685-1759
  • Nationality: German, English
  • Musical Style: Baroque style known for his operas, oratorios, and concertos.
  • Life: Spent his early years studying music in Halle, Germany with a focus on organ, harpsichord, and composition. He later moved to compose in Italy where he composed some of his first operas. He then returned to Germany in 1710 as the new Kapellmeister of Hanover, followed by London. In 1712 he settled in London where he spent the remainder of his career under the service of King George I. It was here that he composed some of his most Christian sacred work, Messiah. He last much of his eyesight towards the later part of his years but continued to work.
  • Instrument: Organ, harpsichord, and violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Messiah- Pastoral Symphony HWV 56 (Classical favorite)
    • Water Music Suite No 1 in F major (Classic Favorite)
    • Music for the Royal Fireworks
    • Suite No 7 in G minor HWV 432- Passacaglia (Classical favorite)
    • Agrippina
    • Keyboard Suite No 4 in D minor (Classical favorite)
    • Alexander's Feast
    • Guilio Cesare
    • The Harmonious Blacksmith
    • Acis and Galatea
    • Rinaldo
    • Suite in B Flat Major HWV 434 (Classical favorite)
    • Semele
    • Ode for St. Cecilia's Day
    • Trio Sonata for 2 Violins and Continuo in G-minor- Dresden (Classical favorite)
    • Israel in Egypt
    • Zadok the Priest
    • Concerti Grossi Op 6

10. Franz Liszt
  • Years: 1811-1886
  • Nationality: Hungarian
  • Musical Style: Romantic
  • Life: He was a child prodigy who studied under Salieri and quickly achieved fame throughout Europe as a piano virtuoso. He spent much of his time performing and composing across Europe in what became known as a public frenzy of Lisztomania. In this sense he was almost one of the first major international music superstars. While best known for his skills as a pianist he also composed many great works. He pioneered the symphonic poem, the concept of thematic transformation, radical departures in harmony. He is considered one of the greatest pianists of all time alongside Chopin. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Standchen in D Minor (Classical favorite. Collaboration with Schubert)
    • Annes de Pelerinage- Years of Pilgrimage
    • Piano Sonata in B Minor
    • Liebestraume- Dreams of Love- (Classical favorite)
    • Batatelle sans tonalite
    • Consolation No 3 S 172 (Classical Favorite)
    • Don Sanche
    • Faust Symphony
    • Hungarian Rhapsody No 2 (Classical Favorite)
    • La Campanella in G sharp Minor (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Concerto No. 1
    • Piano Concerto No. 2
    • Un Sospiro (Classical favorite)
    • En reve Nocturne S 207
    • Totentanz
    • Dance Macabre- Dance of Death
    • Les Preludes S97 Andante (Classical Favorite)
    • Mephisto Waltz No 1 S 514

9. Johannes Brahms
  • Years: 1833-1897
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Romantic Era; German Purity and Romantic Idiom
  • Life: Raised into a middle class family he supported them with his musical performances while developing his own composition. In 1853 he famously met the famous German musical couple Robert and Clara Schumann. From this point on he became infatuated with Clara in one of the most intriguing love triangles in classical history. They never married however, even after the death of Robert Schumann. Brahams became one of the most celebrated German Romantic musicians during his lifetime, producing many symphonies, chamber music, piano, and choral compositions. He was renown as a perfectionist, a lover of nature, and areligious free-thinker that was highly influenced by the Bible. His greatest claim to fame is of course his lullaby. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • 21 Hungarian Dances (Classical Favorite)
    • Academic Festival Overture
    • Tragic Overture
    • Symphony No 3 in F Major Op 90 (Classical favorite)
    • A German Requiem
    • Waltz in A-Flat Major Op 39 No 15 (Classical Favorite)
    • Wiegenleid Op 49 No. 4-Brahms Lullaby (Classical Favorite)
    • Sechs Klavierstuck Op 118
    • Four Serious Songs Op 121
    • Violin Concerto in D major Op 77 (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 4 in E minor Op 98
    • Intermezzo in A major, Op 118 No 2 (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No 1 in C minor Op 68
    • Piano Concerto No 2 in B-flat major Op 38
    • Clarinet Quintet in B minor Op 115
    • Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel Op 24

8. Sergei Rachmaninoff
  • Years: 1873-1943
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Late Romantic, Neoclassicism
  • Life: Born into an aristocratic family he became well versed in the art of music as a young child. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory and was heavily influenced by the work of Tchaikovsky. His Piano Concerto No 2 was his first major breakthrough in Russia in 1901. After a string of success he left after the 1917 Russian Revolution, and eventually spent the rest of his days in the United States. He incorporated his own skill of the piano into his compositions filled with such passion and longing. His music is the climax of the late romantic era filled with lush harmonies, sweeping melodies, and virtuosic piano writing. He also wrote several great sacred pieces including the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom and one of my favorites, Rejoice O Virgin. 
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Bogoroditse Devo-Rejoice, O-Virgin (Beautiful! Classical favorite!)
    • Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (Classical Favorite)
    • Symphony No. 2
    • Symphony No. 3
    • Prelude in C-Sharp Minor Op 3
    • The Rock Op 7
    • Capriccio o nGypsy Themes Op 12
    • The Isle of the Dead
    • Piano Concerto No 2 in C Minor (Classical Favorite)
    • Symphonic Dances
    • Preludes Op. 23
    • Moments Musicaux Op 16
    • Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom Op 31 (Classical favorite) 
    • Piano Concerto No 3 (Classical Favorite)
    • All Night Vigil (Vespers)- Op 37 (Classical Favorite)
    • Prelude in G Minor Op 23 (Classical Favorite)
    • The Bells Op 35 (choral symphony)
    • The Miserly Knight (Russian opera)
    • Francesca da Rimini Op 25
    • Vocalise (Classical favorite)
    • How Fair This Spot (Classical Favorite)

7. Frédéric Chopin
  • Years: 1810-1849
  • Nationality: Polish
  • Musical Style: Romantic Era.  
  • Life: A child-prodigy pianist, he grew up in Warsaw. He moved to Paris as part of the Polish Great Emigration. He suffered from bad health and died at a very young age of 39. He is considered the pride and joy of Polish Classical Music. He is also considered the greatest pianist of all time (alongside Franz Liszt and Rachmaninoff). His piano music is considered technically demanding with it's busy notation, scales, tempo, and precision. While his music moves very fast it still upholds a wonderful harmonious melody with an emphasis on expressive depth. He was known for instrumental ballades, piano sonatas, mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, etudes, impromptus, and preludes.
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Nocturne No 20 in C Sharp Minor (Classical favorite)
    • Etude in C Minor Op 10 No 12- Revolutionary Etude (Classical favorite)
    • Minute Waltz in D flat Major Op 64 No 1(Classical favorite)
    • Nocturne Op 9 No 2 in E-Flat Major (Classical favorite)
    • Waltz No 19 in A Minor (Classical favorite)
    • Funeral March (Classical favorite)
    • Etude Op 10 No. 3
    • 24 Preludes Op 28 No 4 in E Minor (Classical favorite)
    • Nocturne No 1 in B Flat Minor 
    • Ballade No. 3
    • Berceuse in D-Flat Major Op 57 (Classical favorite)
    • Mazurka No. 23
    • Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Minor Op 21
    • Polonaise in A-flat Major Op 53- The Heroic Polonaise (Classical favorite)
    • Ballade No 1 in G Minor Op 23
    • Raindrop Prelude Op 28 No 15
    • Farewell Waltz
    • Fantaisie-Impromptu Op 66 (Classical favorite)
    • Scherzo No. 2
    • Piano Sonata No 2 in B-flat Minor Op 35
    • Barcalloe in F-Sharp Major Op 60

6. Antonio Vivaldi
  • Years: 1678-1741
  • Nationality: Italian
  • Musical Style: Baroque. 
  • Life: Born in Venice he was known as the Red Priest for his distinctive red hair and service as a Catholic priest. He later withdrew from his priesthood to devote himself entirely to his music. He found a post as a musical director of an orphanage where he spent most of his time working. He  became known for his fiery violin writing, energetic rhythms, and expressive melodies. His Four Seasons became considered one of his greatest works after his lifetime. He is regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers of all time. He wrote many violin concertos, operas, and sacred music. He achieved some fame throughout his life however died in poverty, similar to Mozart. 
  • Instrument: Violin
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Four Seasons- La primavera (Classic Favorite!!)
    • L'estro Armonico Op. 3- Harmonic Inspiration  (Classical Favorite)
    • Concerto for Strings in G Minor RV 156 (Classical Favorite)
    • La stravaganza Op 4
    • The Four Seasons- L'estate (Classical Favorite)
    • Griselda
    • Farnace
    • The Four Seasons- L'Automno (Classical Favorite)
    • Dorilla in Tempe (Same opening as Primevera with operatic vocals)
    • The Four Seasons- Winter (Classical Favorite)
    • Ercole su'l Termodonte   (Classical Favorite)
    • Motezuma 
    • Bajazet
    • Gloria in D major RV 589 (Classical Favorite)
    • Stabat Mater RV 621 (Classical Favorite)
    • Concerto for Two Violins in A Minor RV 522
    • Nisi dominus RV 608 (Classical favorite)

5. Richard Wagner
  • Years: 1813-1883
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Romantic Era.
  • Life: He lived a life of extreme controversy, from political exile, many love affairs, and extreme views on racism and antisemitism. He was a Romantic German nationalist who revolutionized the German opera with mythological epics. He practiced a mentality of "Gesamtkunstwerk", a total work of perfect art on every aspect. He was best known for his operas, complex texture, rich in harmonies and orchestration, and the elaborate use of leitmotifs. His music is the epitome of German Romanticism with epic grand-scale delivery. His music has such emotional versatility ranging from strength and joy to sorrow and grief. I especially like his ability to slowly build a song up with anticipation and then deliver a powerful release. As a big fan of Lord of the Rings and fantasy epics this music is just right up my ally. I've also heard his music in many of my favorite movies. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • The Flying Dutchman (Classical Favorite)
    • Das Reingold WWV 86A: Vorspiel (Classical Favorite. In the 2005 film New World)
    • Die Walkure- Ride of the Valkyries (Classic Favorite!! In the 1969 film Apocalypse Now)
    • Die Meistersinger von Numberg- Prelude
    • Tristan and Isolde- Prelude and Liebestod (Classical favorite. In the film Melancholia)
    • Parsifal Prelude (Classical Favorite. In the 2012 film To the Wonder)
    • Siegfried Idyll WWV 103 (Classical Favorite)
    • Wesendonck Lieder- Traume
    • Siegfried (Opera)
    • Tannhauser Overture (Classical favorite. Love the way this song builds)
    • Rienzi- Overture
    • Gotterdammerung- Twilight of the Gods
    • Gotterdammerung- Siegfried's Funeral March (Classical Favorite. Dark and emotional)
    • Lohengrin- Prelude (Classical favorite. Has such a dreamlike fantasy quality to it)

4. Ludwig van Beethoven
  • Years: 1770-1827 
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Classical, Romantic. 
  • Life: Born in Germany he later moved to Vienna to study music under Salieri. He quickly gained a reputation as a masterful pianist and composer. Throughout his time in Vienna he composed some of his famous works, until his hearing began to deteriorate. He continued to compose even after he had become completely deaf. He is believed to have been a member of the Free-mason society. He is considered one of the greatest composers of all time with a very powerful, expressive, and passionate style. He was a crucial figure in the transition of Classical to Romantic. He produced a variety of musical genres and instrumentation; symphonies, concerti, operas, piano sonatas, string quartets, etc.
  • Instrument: Piano
  • Famous Compositions 
    • Symphony No. 3 in E Flat Major Op 55- Eroica
    • Violin Concerto in D Major Op 61 (Classical favorite) 
    • Piano Sonata No. 32
    • Symphony No. 5 in C Minor Op 67 (Classical favorite)
    • Symphony No. 7 in A Major Op 92 (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Concerto No. 3 (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Piano Concerto No 5 in E Flat Major Op 73- Emperor (Classical favorite!) 
    • String Quartet Op 131
    • String Quartet Op 135
    • Piano Sonata 8- Sonata Pathetique- (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Sonata 14- Moonlight Sonata- (Classic Favorite!!)
    • Piano Sonata 21- Waldstein 
    • Piano Sonata 23 - Appassionata
    • Symphony No. 9 in D Minor Op 125 (Classical Favorite. Joyful Joyful!)
    • Bagatelle in A Minor - Fur Elise (Classic Favorite)
    • Missa Solemnis
    • Choral Fantasy Op. 80
    • Adelaide
    • Wellington's Victory Op. 91
    • Symphony No. 6- The Pastoral Symphony- (Classic favorite!! In the film Fantasia)
    • Symphony No 8 in F Major Op 93  (Classical favorite. In the film Maestro) 
    • Symphony No 4 in B Flat Major Op 60
    • Violin Sonata No 9 in A Major Op 47- Kreutzer (Classical favorite)
    • Egmont Op 84 Overture
    • Coriolan Op 62 Overture
    • Piano Sonata No 17 in D Minor- The Tempest (Classical favorite)
    • Fidelio Op 27 Overture
    • Piano Concerto No 4 in G Major Op 58 (Classical favorite) 

3. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
  • Years: 1840-1893
  • Nationality: Russian
  • Musical Style: Romantic Era; Symphonies, Operas, Ballets
  • Life: He is considered Russia's greatest composer from the Romantic Age best known for his sweeping ballets. He experienced great success and popularity throughout his life however he often struggld with financial crisis and depression. He was a closeted homosexual, and died early at the age of 53, which some attribute to cholera while others to suicide. His Nutcracker Suite has become a  staple around Christmas time. His music is in a lot of my favorite films. 
  • Famous Compositions:
    • Swan Lake Op 20. Act 2 No 10 (Classical Favorite. From the 2010 film Black Swan) 
    • Swan Lake- Dance of the Little Swans (Classical Favorite) 
    • The Sleeping Beauty Op 66- Waltz Act 1 (Classical Favorite)
    • Violin Concerto in D Major Op 35 (Classical Favorite) 
    • The Nutcracker- Op 71 Act 2 No 14a- Pas de deux (Classical Favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- Waltz of the Flowers (Classical Favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- Op 71 Act 1 No 2, March (Classical favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- Op 71- Act 1 No 1 Miniature Overture (Classical favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies (Classical favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- Dance of the Reed-Flutes (Classical Favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- The Arabian Dance (Classical Favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- The Chinese Dance (Classical Favorite)
    • The Nutcracker- The Russian Dance (Classical Favorite)
    • Serenade for Strings in C Major Op 48
    • 1812 Overture (Classic Favorite. In the 2005 film V for Vendetta)
    • Variations on a Rococo Theme (Classical Favorite)
    • Six Pieces Op 51 TH 143- Valse sentimentale (Classical favorite) 
    • Piano Concernto No 1 in B-flat Minor Op 23 TH 55 (Classical favorite)
    • Eugene Onegin
    • Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
    • Symphony No 6 in D Minor Op 74- Pathetique
    • Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
    • Symphony No 5 in E Minor Op 64

2. Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Years: 1685-1750
  • Nationality: German
  • Musical Style: Baroque period
  • Instrument: Organ, Harpsichord, Violin
  • Life: He became a highly respected organist and keyboard virtuoso during the German Baroque era. He served most of his life as music director of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig. Known for a vast array of work  ranging from sacred and secular works for choir, to orchestra, and solo instruments that defined the baroque era. He utilized a contrapuntal technique with a control of harmonic and fine organization, and an adaptation of rhythms from abroad.  He is considered one of the greatest composers of all time with a definitive organ sound. His son Carl Philip Emmanuel Bach also became a successful composer during the Classical age. 
  • Instrument: Organ, harpsichord, clavichord, violin, and viola
  • Famous Compositions
    • Cello Suite No 1 in G Major BWV 1007 Prelude (Classical favorite)
    • Goldberg Variations BWV 988 Aria (Classical favorite) 
    • Partitas
    • The Well-Tempered Clavier (Classical Favorite) 
    • Mass is B Minor BWV 232
    • Wachet Auf -Sleeper's Wake (Classic favorite)
    • St. Matthew Passion BWV 244 Part 2 (Classical favorite) 
    • St. John Passion
    • Brandenburg Concerto No 2 in F Major (Classical favorite) 
    • Keyboard Concerto No 1 in D Major after Vivaldi, BWV 972 (Classical favorite)
    • Orchestral Suite No 3 in  Da Major- Air on the G String (Classical favorite)
    • Magnificat in D Major BWV 243 (Classical favorite) 
    • Sheep May Safely Graze (Classical favorite)
    • The Musical Offering
    • Orchestral Suite No 2 in B Minor BWV 1067- Badinerie (Classical Favorite) 
    • The Art of Fugue
    • English Suite No 2 in A Minor- Prelude (Classical favorite. In the film Schindler's List)
    • Concerto for Two Violins, Strings and Basso in D Minor BWV 1043 (Classical favorite)
    • French Suite
    • Christmas Oratorio BWV 248 (Classical favorite) 
    • Sonatas and Paritats for solo violin
    • Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (Classic Favorite, In the film Fantasia)
    • Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor (Classical favorite) 
    • Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Classical favorite) 
    • Italian Concerto in F Major BWV 971
    • Violin Concerto in E Major BWV 1042
    • Violin Concerto No 1 in A Minor BWV 1041
    • Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue
    • Prlude and Fugue in E-flat Major BWV 552- St. Anne

1. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
  • Years: 1756-1791
  • Nationality: Austrian
  • Musical Style: Classical. 
  • Instrument: Piano and violin
  • Life: Showed prodigious skill at a very young age from the city of Salzburg; He later dismissed his court position in Salzburg to compose in the city of Vienna, which has become the epicenter of music. There he wrote some of his most famous operas and symphonies while competing with other prominent musicians of the time. He struggled financially and with his health during his brief life. He died at a very young age of 35, which is still a mystery today. A versatile composer of classical and baroque; clarity, balance, transparency, and simplicity. It is music of true beauty and genius, made most popular for me by the film Amadeus.   
  • Famous Compositions: 
    • Mitridate, re di Ponto
    • Ein Kleine Nachtmusic K 525- Serenade (Classical favorite) 
    • La finta giardiniera (The Pretend Garden-Girl)
    • Idomeneo (King of Crete)
    • Symphony No 29 in K201 (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail
    • The Marriage of Figaro- Duettino Sull Aria (Classical favorite. In the film Shawshank Redemption) 
    • Serenade for Winds in B flat K.361 Gran Partia (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Don Giovanni Overture (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Cosi fan tutte K 588 Overture
    • Piano Concerto No 21 in C Major K 467 (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Sonata No 16 in C Major K 545- Sonata  facile (Classical favorite)
    • Fantasia in D Minor K 397
    • Piano Sonata No 11 in A Major K 331- Tema (Classical favorite) 
    • The Magic Flute Overture (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • The Magic Flute- Queen of the Night aria (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Clarinet Concerto in A Major K 622 (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Concerto in E Flat K 482 (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • The Requiem in D Minor K 626- Lacrimosa (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • The Requiem K 626- Dies Irae (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • The Requiem K 626- Confutatis (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • The Marriage of Figaro K 492- Ah Tutti Contenti (Classical favorite. In the film Amaedus)
    • Symphony No. 25 in G Minor (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Zaide- Aria Ruhe Sanft
    • Symphony No 41 in C Major K551- Jupiter (Classical favorite) 
    • Symphony No 40 in G Minor K 550 (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Concerto in D Minor K 466 (Classical favorite. In the film Amadeus)
    • Concerto for Flute and Harp (Classic Favorite. In the film Amadeus. Beauty!)
    • Piano Concerto No. 23 (Classic Favorite. In the film New World)
    • Piano Concerto No. 20 (Classic Favorite)
    • Great Mass in C Minor K 427 (Classical favorite)
    • Ave verum corpus (Classical favorite) 
    • Concerto for Two Pianos K 365 (Classical favorite)
    • The Abduction from the Seraglio K 384 (Classical favorite. From the film Amadeus)
    • Sinfonia Concertante in E Flat Major K 364
    • Die Zauberflote K620- Finale Papagena (Classical favorite. From the film Amadeus)
    • Symphony No 39 in E-Flat major K543
    • Clarinet Quintet in A Major K581 (Classical favorite)
    • Exsultate, jubilate K165- Alleluja (Classical favorite)
    • Piano Concerto No 24 in C Minor K491
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